Caledonia Argus

Past still haunts author with Caledonia ties

Posted: 5/14/02

by Jane Palen
Managing editor

Peter Razor took a circuitous route in making the move from electrician to writer, and there were many demons to exorcise along the way. But in the end, his simple, moving memoir, ìWhile the Locust Slept,î was a triumph that far exceeded his expectations. It also touched the hearts of many people in this area because the book, part of which is set in rural Houston County, tells of Razorís difficult life as a Native American child, first in an orphanage in Owatonna, then has an indentured farm hand who was severely abused at the hands of a sadistic farmer, John Schauls. After a beating that nearly killed him, he finally found a home with Leland and Pat Klug where he was treated well. He stayed with the Klugs for a little over a year and at the age of 18, left that home. He is a decorated veteran of the Korean War, and spent most of his working life as an electrician for the State of Wisconsin.

Razor, who was raised as Jim but uses Peter as his pen name, has visited Caledonia many times since leaving in 1947. But this trip, he made a public appearance at the Caledonia Public Library to sign copies of his book, which has received critical acclaim and recently won the 2001 Minnesota Book Award.

To Razorís surprise, about 100 people showed up Friday afternoon to talk with him, reminisce and have copies of their book signed. A second book signing was held in the evening.

Razor read from his book, and answered questions from the audience. Many former classmates of Razorís were in attendance, and shared memories from their high school days.

The soft-spoken Razor appeared to have a wonderful recollection of people with whom he came in contact during his years in Caledonia. The afternoon event took longer than the two hours allotted because Razor rushed no one, and instead took the time to speak with each person who came through. Many of the people who attended had connections to people and families named in the book. Razor described being in Caledonia for the book signing as a ìvery rewarding experience.î Later, Razor explained that the process of writing the book was difficult, but the process was good for him.

ìThere were some demons being tossed out,î he said.

He said his daughter Kathy, who accompanied him to the book signing, was to ìblameî for starting him on his journey of remembering.

ìShe started asking about my childhood, and said I should start writing things down.î As he did that, both father and daughter saw that something special was emerging.

A family history turned into a cumbersome 600 pages, which Razor attempted to edit. Even after the manuscript was edited down, the publisher still thought it was too long. He then decided to write in a ìflashbackî style, punctuating his experiences as a teenager with scenes from the orphanage. That was two years ago, and the book was published in August of 2001.

Even today, Razor has nightmares about his experiences in the orphanage and at the Schauls farm. He thinks often about what happened to him, but he also thinks about the many others who suffered the same fate.

ìThereís a lot of silence out there,î he said.

And for every one of the orphans who were abused, there were others who were simply neglected and denied opportunities that should have been afforded them, be observed.

ìWhile the Locust Sleptî is published by Minnesota Historical Society Press.

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